[John Massaria]

Hi to all.

Which amplifier to use with Kennerton Gjallarhorn JM Edition headphones?

I don't have the answer, but as in medicine, we can advance by elimination to establish a diagnosis: the examinations carried out make it possible to tell a patient that he does not have this or that pathology; as to know what the patient presents as pathology, well it's a whole different story; it is necessary to seek still ...by elimination.

All I can say with the Gjallarhorn GH 50 (and its JM Edition version) is that one should think before using a tube amplifier with a not very good signal-to-noise ratio.

To give you a concrete example: I have a priori a very good tube amp, a Viva 2A3, reputed to be silent (even a little more than its big brother the Viva 845) which however presents a little breath (hum) perceptible in the silence with an Odin mk2 (sensitivity 104 dB / 1 mW - 40 Ohms https://fischeraudio.store/products/42594891) and which becomes borderline audible (in the greatest silence) with the Thekk (sensitivity 100 db / 1 mW - 40 Ohms https://fischeraudio.store/products/43260838).

On the other hand, with the Magni V2 (sensitivity 112 dB / 1 mW - 33 Ohms https://fischeraudio.store/products/40838053) I have a much higher noise level (more than 10 dB higher) compared to my Thekk, which becomes clearly audible and annoying to hear (on my Viva 2A3 amp) as soon as there is the slightest silence in the music played.
So, with the Gjallarhorn reaching a record sensitivity of 118 dB / mW - 33 Ohms https://fischeraudio.store/products/jmm) in its JM Edition version, well you can imagine the extra noise compared to the Thekk (nearly 20 dB higher) , which is huge, and amha quite incompatible with listening on a tube amp, like mine.

This is perhaps (and even surely) the reason why I can't acquire such high sensitivity headphones, for sedentary use, with my tube amp Viva 2A3.
On the other hand, the Magni V2 works very well (without annoying breath) with my small Matrix M-Stage transistorized amp, which incidentally currently drive the Thror used by my son. But this "little" amp is not as qualitative as my Viva 2A3, far from it.

So, be careful when buying a headphone as sensitive as the Gjallarhorn, or the Magni; this main strength (high sensitivity) can also be a weakness, for some amplifications not very quiet, including the most prestigious ones.

(Note: the optimal sensitivity of headphones to be associated with the Viva 2A3 amp ranges from 90 to 100 dB / 1 mW (roughly speaking from the HE-1000 to the Thekk/Thror, maxi Odin/Utopia with its 104 dB sensitivity), it is important to know this, especially for sensitive ears and allergic to the background noise of the amplifiers).

I agree- the the dynamic driver Kennerton's in general are all ez to drive- and will reveal all the resolution of the dac/amp sound- but it doesnt present a hard to drive design at all... BUT wouldn't it be neat if we could use OTL amps with the ez to drive GH50 JM or Magni with a ohm converter "RESISTOR" plug in to up the ohms to maybe 300. It works very well and ez with Etymotic ER4P/S and ez to make on a plug adapter. I 100% agree the GH50 and Magni needs no special amp - ez to drive and would stress they are best when volume gradually turned up but no where near what most headphones need to come alive. Again- not ideal for OTL tubes, but could be with a ez mod resistor of say 300ohms.... have both worlds (ss and tube) with Kennerton adopting Etymotic idea of ohm resistor - just an idea...

 

[eric65]

I agree- the the dynamic driver Kennerton's in general are all ez to drive- and will reveal all the resolution of the dac/amp sound- but it doesnt present a hard to drive design at all... BUT wouldn't it be neat if we could use OTL amps with the ez to drive GH50 JM or Magni with a ohm converter "RESISTOR" plug in to up the ohms to maybe 300. It works very well and ez with Etymotic ER4P/S and ez to make on a plug adapter. I 100% agree the GH50 and Magni needs no special amp - ez to drive and would stress they are best when volume gradually turned up but no where near what most headphones need to come alive. Again- not ideal for OTL tubes, but could be with a ez mod resistor of say 300ohms.... have both worlds (ss and tube) with Kennerton adopting Etymotic idea of ohm resistor - just an idea...

Hi John.

I agree with you that in general, all Kennerton headphones are fairly easy to drive and require much less power for the amplifier than this is necessary to drive a Hifiman Susvara or HE-6, or a JPS-Abyss, or an Audeze LCD-4, not to mention the Raal Requisite SR1a which requires a 2 x 100 W amplifier.

Thekk and Thror, however, require very high quality amplifiers with sufficient power (at least 1 Watt over 40 Ohm) to achieve their full potential.

Afterwards, the signal-to-noise ratio of the amplifier must also be taken into account, as indicated in my precedent post, and be in adequacy with the sensitivity of the headphones.

Likewise, the amplifier gain must be taken into account and be consistent with the sensitivity of the headphones (I'll come back to this with a specific example).

Finally, the synergy of the headphones with the amplifier is also important to take into account, especially according to your tastes and what you are looking for.

Finally, I will show you with the last picture, the ultimate nomadic system!

To begin with, not all tube amplifiers are the same in terms of the signal-to-noise ratio :
The worst one I ever owned is the AudioValve RKV2 in OTL mode: Redhibitory background noise with all my dynamic and electrodynamic headphones (Audeze LCD3 and X, Kennerton Odin mk1 and mk2; and I'm not even talking about the Magni...)
With a headphones as insensitive as the ... Stax SR-009, using an adapter (Wee Audio) and well, the result can be interesting? (see picture below).

AudioValve RKV2 + Wee Audio + Stax SR-009

As already mentioned, the tube amplifier Viva2A3 (and its even less silent big brother the Viva 845) can cause problems (of audible background noise in the silence of a country house) as soon as the headphones reach and exceed the sensitivity of 104 dB/ 1 mW (40 Ohms); below this sensitivity, no problem.

A tubes/transistor hybrid amp, which I owned, the Rudistor RP 8K-VT, on the other hand, was exceptionally quiet for the signal-to-noise ratio (zero breath and zero audible hum): a very dynamic amp but with a sound less tasty to hear (a bit dry) compared to my Viva 2A3.

I also owned a high level transistorized amp, the XI-Audio Formula S, originally designed to drive the Abyss.
Very quiet amplifier, very powerful, with two gain positions (playing on the amplifier feedback).
Unfortunately, the strongest gain of this amplifier, which gave the best sound, was much too high with my dac Audiomat outputting 2.8 Vrms on its RCA output, which left a useful, not progressive and developed enough, stroke of the volume knob of the amp of only a few mm.
Moreover the sound was too dry and not euphonious enough to be heard with the Thror; it was more acceptable to hear with the Odin mk2, more euphonious than the Thror, but the lack of progressivity of the volume knob (too high gain) made it very difficult to use this amp with the Odin.

In short, nothing is simple to use as an amplifier, even with Kennerton headphones, which are known to be easy to drive.

The only universal amplifier that drives all Kennerton headphones, with brilliance and without any problem, is the Matrix M-Stage (200 euros transistorized amplifier), here used in a nomadic configuration, with an Odin.
But the headphones is heavy to carry (Odin mk2), and the 12 volts battery too ... .

 

[John Massaria]

wow what a set up! insightful ideas as well!

 

[frost15]

I'm listening to Yazz Ahmed's Polyhymnia right now (one my last year's fav jazz albums; Check out her debut though 'La Saboteuse', because it's the Bitches Brew of this generation!) and, once again, I'm being mindblown by the JM horns rendition of the album. It's like being in the studio with the whole band. The bass is refined, yet elegantly present, all the instruments are being played holographically... I don't think I've ever heard a jazz album of this sort sound like this. It's a completely hypnotic experience.

 

[EternityInParis]

I'm listening to Yazz Ahmed's Polyhymnia right now (one my last year's fav jazz albums; Check out her debut though 'La Saboteuse', because it's the Bitches Brew of this generation!) and, once again, I'm being mindblown by the JM horns rendition of the album. It's like being in the studio with the whole band. The bass is refined, yet elegantly present, all the instruments are being played holographically... I don't think I've ever heard a jazz album of this sort sound like this. It's a completely hypnotic experience.

I noticed with the JM mod everything sounds like an original master recording not released to the public. It is such a tight and intimate studio sound. Feels like you are in possession of recording you shouldn't be.

 

[frost15]

I noticed with the JM mod everything sounds like an original master recording not released to the public. It is such a tight and intimate studio sound. Feels like you are in possession of recording you shouldn't be.

That's a very accurate way to put it into words yes!!

 

[Terriero]

Kennerton should be proud of their customers... They don't need a marketing department

 

[John Massaria]

their (Kennerton) products are that beautiful inside and out- they become additive and have a loyal following for sure and for a reason- they are that good..
.

 

[Terriero]

If you contact with Kennerton, you can ask them to design a specific stabilized wood headphone for you? (not a new design, just one that they had published -for example, the Magni Baltic sea-)

 

[John Massaria]

If you contact with Kennerton, you can ask them to design a specific stabilized wood headphone for you? (not a new design, just one that they had published -for example, the Magni Baltic sea-)

Yes I think so

 

[eric65]

If you contact with Kennerton, you can ask them to design a specific stabilized wood headphone for you? (not a new design, just one that they had published -for example, the Magni Baltic sea-)

Yes.

But it will take longer to obtain, and probably a little more expensive.

 

[Malevolent]

Kennerton should be proud of their customers... They don't need a marketing department

Well, if your headphones sound good, half the battle is already won.

The other half of the equation comprises the other pertinent factors - looks, comfort, customer service, etc.

In my (limited) perspective, the Gjallarhorn GH50 sounds, looks, and feels good. Plus, my one experience with Kennerton has been very positive, thus far; for just €20 extra, my package arrived within 3 working days. That's faster than most shipping services.

Thus, top marks to Kennerton all day. With such positive experiences garnered by its customers, you can't stop the positive vibes from growing.

 

[Joaquin Dinero]

I'm listening to Yazz Ahmed's Polyhymnia right now (one my last year's fav jazz albums; Check out her debut though 'La Saboteuse', because it's the Bitches Brew of this generation!) and, once again, I'm being mindblown by the JM horns rendition of the album. It's like being in the studio with the whole band. The bass is refined, yet elegantly present, all the instruments are being played holographically... I don't think I've ever heard a jazz album of this sort sound like this. It's a completely hypnotic experience.

Always looking for new jazz artists, thx. I dont have the Gjallhorns but hopefully my lowly Vali's will make do

 

[frost15]

Always looking for new jazz artists, thx. I dont have the Gjallhorns but hopefully my lowly Vali's will make do

You won't regret listening to Yazz Ahmed! It's very atypical jazz, almost avant-garde in a sense, fusing many different elements and harboring an array of excellent musicians!

 

[Terriero]

You won't regret listening to Yazz Ahmed! It's very atypical jazz, almost avant-garde in a sense, fusing many different elements and harboring an array of excellent musicians!

Last night, I had headache and didn't listen to music (my wife saw me in the computer without my headphones on and was really suprised about that ) I have your jazz recomendation open in the browser and I will listen to tonight. Thanks for sharing music